School Safety

Creating a safer school climate for our students is a priority. A critical ingredient in creating a safer school environment is classroom response to an incident at school. Weather events, fire, accidents, intruders, and other threats to student safety are scenarios that are planned and trained for by students, teachers, staff, and administration, in partnership with our first responders.

Standard Response Protocol

Shadow Hills High School in collaboration with Indio Police Department, Cal Fire, and the Desert Sands Unified School District has implemented the Standard Response Protocol (SRP).

The SRP is not based on one individual possible scenario but on the response to any given scenario. One large benefit of the SRP is the standard language used by all responders; this includes students, parents, staff, and first responders. The protocol also allows for a predictable series of actions as an event unfolds.

The SRP is based upon four actions: Lockout, Lockdown, Evacuate and Shelter. Each has specific staff and student directives that are unique to the action.

For more information, please use the links below.

Student / Parent Handout

Public Address Poster

Lockout Door Poster

Lockdown Drill in Progress Poster

Our District Standard Response Training Video for Faculty & Staff.

 

Active Assailant

Shadow Hills High School has held active assailant drills. These drills include training and preparation by students and staff in conjunction with law enforcement and other emergency responders. Since then, Shadow Hills High School has continued to review safety procedures and protocols, assess building access points, and prepare for a response using Run, Hide, Fight, a nationally recognized model for responding to intruders in a school setting.

Some important information regarding the drills:

  • Student training includes practicing the hide portion of Run, Hide, Fight.
  • At the high school level, staff will discuss Run, Hide, Fight with students.
  • In all schools, the drill begins with the announcement "This is a drill. This is a drill. This is a drill." and ends with the announcement "The drill is now over. Resume normal operations."
  • Following the drill, parents may receive an informational email or social media posting from the school to notify them that the drill was conducted.

The goal of any drill is to improve our ability to protect students. While students and staff are aware the drill will be occurring, specifics about the date and time are not being shared so we can better evaluate our emergency preparedness plans and improve our response skills.

Standard Reunification Method (SRM)

Events may occur at school that requires parents to pick up their students in a controlled release. The process of controlled release is called a reunification and may be necessary due to weather, a power outage, a hazmat issue, or if a crisis occurs at the school.

Shadow Hills High School in collaboration with the Indio Police Department, Cal Fire, and other community partners have implemented the Standard Reunification Method, based on protocols established by the I Love U Guys Foundation.

Student/Parent Reunification is a protocol that makes this process more predictable and less chaotic for all involved. Because a controlled release is not a typical end of school day event, a reunification may occur at a different location than the school a student attends. If this location is another school, then those students may be subject to a controlled release as well.

NOTIFICATION:

Parents may be notified in a number of ways. The school or district may use its broadcast phone or text message system. In some cases, students may be asked to send a text message to their parents. A reunification text message from a student may look something like this: "The school has closed, please pick me up at 3:25 at the main entrance. Bring your ID".

Crosswalk Safety

Accidents can happen anywhere, anytime. Despite being careful, a minor slip in the driver's concentration can lead to a fatality. Also, children are not as adept at judging distances and speed of vehicles as adults are. This makes the need to be alert and aware of traffic safety that much more important, especially for kids. It is important for them to understand basic street safety as soon as they reach the age of walking around in neighborhood streets unaccompanied. The best way to teach them to is to hold their hands and walk them through the process.

Crosswalk Safety Tips For Kids

The following tips will help you teach the basics of crosswalk safety to your kids:

  • Sidewalks, Please: Make it clear to your child that walking in the street is completely unacceptable. Sidewalks are made for pedestrian use, so be sure to have your kids utilize them at all times. Teach kids to be a careful pedestrian by making sure they always stick to the sidewalks, even if traffic doesn't look too heavy.
  • Pedestrian Crossings Only: No matter what the emergency (spotting a friend or a family member on the road), it is not advisable to dash from one side of the street to the other, unless there is a crosswalk. It is essential that kids use traffic signals and crosswalks whenever crossing a street.
  • To Walk or Not to Walk: Though drivers are supposed to halt at crosswalks, not all of them do. Teach your child to be a careful pedestrian by letting them know that it is only safe to cross when the signal says 'Walk.'
  • Left, Right, Left: Teach your child to look on both sides of the street before crossing, as well as to keep an eye out for cars that are backing or turning. The general rule of looking left, then right and then left again is a great way to teach basic crosswalk safety to your kids and keep them safe when crossing the street.
  • Wait and Make Eye Contact: Teach your child to be a good pedestrian and wait at a crosswalk for vehicles to come to a complete halt. Making eye contact with the driver before or during crossing is also a good crosswalk safety tip for pedestrians.
  • Toe the Line - Teach your child how to be a mindful pedestrian by informing them to stay within the lines of the crosswalk while crossing the street. If there are too many people crossing at the same time, kids should practice crosswalk safety by patiently follow the others instead of trying to push past them beyond the lines.
  • No Music, No Cellphones: A street is not the place where anyone can afford to let their guard down. Talk to your child about being a safe pedestrian and the hazards of walking the streets wearing their headphones (not being able to hear an approaching vehicle) or talking to/chatting with someone on the phone. One must be alert and completely aware of their surroundings and avoid any kind of distraction.

Source: Adapted from JumpStart, 2018

 

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